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I was in a very dark place in my life. My heart was completely broken, my relationships were failing, my life felt like shattered glass. It was useless picking up the pieces. I had given up…on everything, including my faith. Then an Angel in the form of my sister-in-grace reached out to me. She said she had a word for me from God.

He said, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

When my sister-in-law said this I laughed, I said to her, “My life is falling apart. I can barely get through today without crying my eyes out and you expect me to have hope for the future.”

She said, “This is God’s promise to you, I need you to hold on to His promise.”

“You have no idea how I feel,” is what I said to her, “you’ve never gone through pain like this before!”

“Actually, I have.” Is what she said, I could hear it in her voice. She was telling me the truth. We both went silent for a while. “Do me favor”, she said, “the next time you find yourself so overwhelmed by the hurt that it feels like you can’t breathe, I want you to do this one thing for me.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“I want you to praise Him.” I remembered thinking, its official, she’s crazy! It’s time to hang up the phone now.

“I know that sounds crazy,” Is what she said. Whoa, did she read my mind? “But I want you to trust me in this.” She pleaded.

As I mentioned earlier faith had left the building for me, so this idea of having hope when all hope was lost and trusting God again seemed insane to me. But there was something about her faith and her confidence in this promise that encouraged me to at least try.

Moments later…

There I was lying on the bathroom floor. The cool tile felt good against my tear-stained cheek. The hurt raged within me like a vicious storm.

“I can’t do this, I won’t do this.” I argued, but I promised her that I would. “God I praise You, I give You the glory. Thank you Father, Hallelujah! It hurts Father, God it hurts so bad, but I give You the praise and the glory Lord!”

What felt like the weakest moment in my life became the most powerful and most defining moment of my life. The weight I was carrying suddenly lifted. I didn’t realize how hard I was fighting to keep myself together. I felt this presence that laid beside me and wrapped strong arms around me. Then came the peace that stole in like a gentle wind. It dried my tears and eased my mind. The headache I had that felt like an atomic bomb had gone off in my head, quickly faded away. My heart, though broken, somehow felt…cared for. I don’t know how else to explain it except to say that Hope came in. Now this hope was not a feeling I felt, but a presence. Not a human being, someone far more divine. I believe Christ Himself showed up in that bathroom. I left that bathroom with Hope by my side. I walked away feeling like I can try this faith thing one more time.

Things didn’t change in my life right away. I spent many more days crying and praying on that bathroom floor. Somehow I was able to hold on to God’s promise. Probably because everywhere I went I kept seeing or hearing His promise. I needed a new key chain and there it was, a key chain about having Hope amongst a bunch of goofy, non-Christian key chains. I’d turn on the TV or the radio and I’d hear Jeremiah 29:11. The word “hope” or the phrase, “hope for the future”, would pop up on my favorite TV shows, a commercial, a poster, or in a movie I’m watching. I didn’t have to fight to hold on to Hope because it was all around me. It kept chasing me down. It was as if Hope was fighting for me. Then one day I began to feel it on the inside and soon it began to manifest itself in every area of my life.

That was Seven Years Ago.

I asked God to explain the, “not harm me” part of His promise because what I went through really hurt me. He explained that He would never allow anything to come my way that would irrevocably damage me. Any pain in this life would only be temporary. He would never take me to a place beyond His repair.

What appeared to be a loss was actually a gain. I gained strength that I didn’t know I had access to, knowledge that I didn’t have before and confidence in knowing that I can overcome anything and do extraordinary things through Christ. Above all I came away with an awareness of just how great God’s love is for me. I can truly testify to who Christ is. I can now write and speak with a boldness that I did not have before that says, “God is not human, that He should lie, not a human being, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” Numbers 23:19

My Prayer for You

I want you to know and grab a hold of this, God loves you child of God with an Unfailing Love. His plans and hopes for you are real and it’s going to touch every area of your life. You may be down and out right now but it’s not for long. It may feel like you can’t but believe me when I say that you can have Hope For The Future. For Christ is your HOPE! It’s an unshakeable, unbreakable promise from God. Signed and sealed by His beloved Son Jesus when He shed His righteous blood on the cross for you. Today I’m living that promise.